Escape from Reality
Sea journeys, historical fiction meets mythology, and fantastical creations.
Hello there,
Even though almost 40% of the U.S. population has received at least one dose of the COVID vaccine, cases are rising again. Meanwhile, some countries have had a slow or problematic vaccine roll-out, and if you live in Brazil or South Africa and plan to get vaccinated, the light at the end of the tunnel is a ways off. Even Canada isn't doing well; it's in the midst of a surge while it's still on the vaccination phase prioritizing frontline workers and the elderly. So it's still a good time to escape reality.
Watch
Has the pandemic made you feel like you want to just get away from it all and take to the sea? Here are two things you can watch to do that vicariously:
Maidentrip (Amazon Prime) is a documentary about a fearless teenager who had to fight in a Dutch court to make an epic solo sailboat journey, becoming the youngest person to sail around the world alone. It's equal parts inspiring and terrifying.
Kon-Tiki (Netflix, but only until April 26) is a fictional depiction of the real 1947 journey of a man trying to prove theories he was wrong about by sailing from Peru to Polynesia.
Read
I've gotten really into fantasy books, particularly ones involving magical realism, religion, or folklore.
If you, too, enjoy stories in which historical fiction meets mythology, try Gods of Jade and Shadow (Mexico, Mayan mythology), The Wolf in the Whale (the Arctic, Inuit mythology), The Ghost Bride (Malaysia, Chinese afterlife mythology), or The Library of Legends (China, Chinese mythology). The Ghost Bride was made into a Netflix series, but it's a thumbs down.
See the full list of watch and read recommendations here.
Follow
Artist Stephanie Kilgast makes fantastical, otherworldly creations that combine industrialized objects with nature, and she shares them on her Instagram.
Do
Spring is here, and if you have a lot of plants in your house like I do, that means the gnats are back. And if that's the case, do yourself a favor and get some sticky traps. While they're not very pretty, they're a lot more effective than the home remedies out there.
Until next week,
Rachel
Amazon has a few traps that aren't expensive or ugly, but work. Loved the photos.